The Past & The Present & The Past Again
by FairyTailxoLove
Summary: Gajeel, a reputable Phantom Lord soldier, is brought to Fairy Tail -unrecognized- after a severe injury. He slowly but surely begins to realize that he admires the boisterous Guild & develops feelings for a blue haired young woman. However, could his secret identity remain hidden? Gajeel begins to learn that what happens in the past doesn't always stay there. GaLe! Read and Review!
1. The Beginning

**Disclaimer; Nooo! I don't own Fairy Tail. Are ya happy? I bet it makes all the sadists out there do the cha-cha in glee when I miserably say that I'm not Hiro Mashima and none of these characters belong to me. :(**

Adrenaline.

That was what coursed through his veins as they felt the first deafening sound and impact of the bombs. Followed by the bombs were sounds of gunshots, piercing the silent sky with loud noises.

While the other soldiers sat behind the walls, paralyzed with fear, Gajeel Redfox merely clutched his gun, shouted "FUCK THIS!", hopped over the wall and began shooting with a sadistic grin on his pierced face.

Bullets whizzed by his head but he didn't seem to notice, or care for that matter.

DUCK, ROLL, SPRINT, DUCK...

He dodged the bullets, the bombs, and the shrapnel with ease, as if he had been doing this all his life.

He managed a quick glance behind him and smirked. All the new soldiers that were assigned to him were shakily climbing off the wall; wild, fearful gazes took in their first sights of War.

Gajeel had hand-picked these special bunch of cowards; he was the Kurogane, a one man army, and he sure as Hell didn't play well with others. With these cowards in his group, he could do what he did best without distractions.

"PHANTOM LORD!" He shouted, laughing madly as he ran closer to enemy line.

His narrowed red eyes glanced around smoothly, until it landed on vibrant pink hair.

"There you are, Salamander," he snarled, his gun hoisted at shoulder length.

With long strides he came up to the enemy line, his gun cocked. As soldiers ran up to him with shrill screams, waving their weapons, he simply shot them down. He never missed. Ever.

Salamander had stood up, a mask of fury on his adolescent face. Enlisted when he was just a teenager, he had as big of a reputation as Gajeel in the field of War.

"FAIRY TAIL!" He shouted, punching a fist into the air. Gajeel grinned largely, ducking out of the way when bullets shot by.

He had been waiting for this for so long. In his dreams, he has crushed Salamander, repeatedly slamming the butt of his gun against that infuriating face, relishing the tortured moans erupting from the pathetic Fairy shit.

He cocked his gun in the blink of an eye, ready to pull the trigger. This is it...

"Gajeel! I got your back, bro!" A man's voice called behind him.

He should have known better than to glance over his shoulder, given all his years of training, yet he still did.

Juvia's boyfriend, Bora, was behind him, looking terrified yet determined.

"FOOL! GET BACK!" Gajeel roared at the man, just as he heard someone distantly yell, "INCOMING!"

He knew what that meant; he was going to get bombed, unless he booked it.

"Gajeel!" Bora wailed, all his empty bravado gone. He would have left him, he wouldn't have cared, and he would've been safe...

_"Gajeel-kun, you have to promise Juvia that you'll protect Bora-san. Promise?" He recalled the salty droplets rolling down her porcelain skin, her deep blue eyes strong and solemn, and the feel of her soft blue hair._

"Why the fuck would I do that? What is he to me?" Gajeel growled, looking away and feeling uncomfortable by the woman's tears.

"Bora-san is the man I love," Juvia had said unwaveringly. Gajeel loathed the fact that he flinched at that. "He doesn't know what he's getting himself into. Please, if you value our friendship, protect him."

He had scoffed when she said friendship at the time. He didn't need friends. However, he couldn't pretend that he wasn't attracted to the woman's strength and loyalty. Not to mention her goddamn sexy physical attributes; he was willing to do anything for her, whether he wanted to or not.

***  
With her promise in mind, he launched himself at Bora.

**"GET THE FUCK DOWN!"**He screamed, just as the explosion threw his body halfway across the field.

His torn up body bounced not once, not twice, but three times before rolling to a stop. His Phantom Lord uniform was charred and his skin scorched like the blazing sun above him. He was in so much shock that he barely felt the burning pain in his head.

At last, mercy had come to this soldier in the form of unconsciousness.

***  
"Oh shit! Look at this fella!" Someone whistled. Gajeel barely registered the feeling of being turned over, onto his back.

"Is he dead?" Came an icy, cold masculine voice.

"I can feel a heartbeat...he's breathing!" Said an astonished voice above him.

"Master...what do you think? He's too burned to be recognized and his uniform is destroyed. What if he's in Phantom Lord?" This time it was a female voice, hard and intense.

After a silence, someone else spoke. It was an elderly voice filled with wisdom.

"He is a strong one. It is a miracle that he survived that blast of Fairy Law; something that had destroyed more than half of Phantom Lord in one blow. We shall take him back to Fairy Tail. Perhaps we can nurse him back to strength. Erza, Gray...pick him up and be gentle. Who knows how long he will last."

_Wait..WHAT? He was going to Fairy Tail...to the enemy base! NO!_

"Yes, Master," the voices echoed solemnly.

He felt a horrible, horrible pain on his burnt arms and legs at that moment. Fingers dug into his tender, melted skin. The pain was so intense, that his body had no choice but to shut down again.

"...Porlyusica is not here at the moment. It's a two week journey to go get her, and another two weeks to bring her back. Do you know of any herbs that could help him?" That elderly voice asked, coming from somewhere near him. Gajeel tried opening his eyes, he tried to thrash around, but his body would not listen. He was a vegetable. A freaking useless vegetable.

"I-I guess I can try. His wounds are really severe. I can't imagine the pain that he went through..." A soft, hesitant voice said.

**JUVIA!**Gajeel did everything he could to open his eyes, but his body did not hear his demands.

_WAKE UP. WAKE UP. Juvia is here?_

"You know, I'm sure that once we get him all fixed up, he could be quite handsome," the old man's voice had a teasing edge to it.

"M-master!" Juvia's voice rang out, embarrassed and all squeaky. Gajeel felt a soft breeze hit his arm, followed by the brush of light cotton. Was it Juvia's dress?

"Alright, I'll leave you to do what you do best," said the Master, followed by the sound of a closing door.

Gajeel listened intently to the cheerful humming sounds coming from Juvia. Oh, he would kill anyone and everyone just to see her. He tried to open his eyes once more, his face grimacing in concentration.

He pictured her smiling face, that quick twirl of her umbrella, that unbelievably strong power she had to hold HIM, out of all people, close to her.

With a fierce struggle he opened his crimson eyes, his gaze blurry.

"You're awake!" Juvia said breathlessly, clasping her hands together. When he caught sight of the fluff of blue hair, a tired, wan smile broke out on his guarded face.

"Juvia..." he sighed raggedly, his fingers reaching out. He tried looking into those dark blue gems of eyes, but frowned slightly when he found hazel instead.

"My name is not Juvia," the girl said gently. "My name is Levy McGarden, member of Fairy Tail."

**AN: Yep. I thought of a new story while eating cereal, half conscious. Don't look too much into Gajeel's personality; he's practically dead and/or delirious throughout three-fourths of this chapter. He'll start getting back into his rough, angry personality in the next chapter, when he begins to regain some sense.  
Sooo...what do you think? Review please! I'm a little nervous about doing an actual story, compared to the cutesy one-shots I usually do…should I continue? :S**


	2. Secret Pact

Levy stared into the man's crimson eyes softly. Master was right; behind the bandages, behind the burns, behind the raw skin, was someone who was quite handsome at one point.

The explosion had burnt off his long midnight-black mane, leaving him with a cropped, spiky head of hair.

Levy was sure that with the proper treatment and herbs, she could get him back to the way he was.

"You'll need to be in here for a while; you've suffered many burns that must be treated immediately," she said firmly. When all he did was stare at her, she offered the man one of her 1000-watt smiles.

"You'll be good in no time!"

If Gajeel didn't feel pain every time he moved, he would've retched at the girl's happy-go-lucky attitude.

_"How could I mistake this girl for Juvia?"_ he thought to himself harshly, giving the girl a bitter stare.

While Juvia had a pale, porcelain complexion, she had a peachy glow. While Juvia had large, firm breasts, she barely had the chest of a twelve year old. While Juvia had straight blue hair that curled elegantly at the end, she had a wild, untamable mop of curly blue hair that looked neglected; it was pushed back with a headband.

While Juvia had solemn, fierce eyes, she had gullible, wide, empathetic eyes. Everyone knew that empathy only led you to your doom.

And the most important difference; while Juvia was in Phantom Lord, she was in Fairy Tail.

Fairy Tail. The Guild he was taught to hate. The members in this Guild were all weak shits; the townspeople boast of their strength, when all the glory should actually go to Phantom Lord. And now, he was alone in a room with a living, breathing proof of a weak Fairy shit.

She was cleaning the infirmary room up now, idly murmuring things to herself as she worked.

"Oi ," he growled, trying to get her attention. She immediately straightened up, and rushed over to his side. Her eyes were wide and worried.

"Is everything okay? Where does it hurt?" She asked quickly, adjusting a few of his bandages. Her fingers accidentally brushed against a fresh wound and he let out a low hiss.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! I-"

**"Will you just shut the fuck up?"** he roared. Ignoring the extreme pain, he grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and pulled her to him.

Turning her around, he got off the bed, pressing her back to his chest. A strong, scarred arm crushed against her neck, effectively blocking her from breathing. Her fingers weakly scratched at his arm as she gasped for breath.

He bent low, snarling into the delicate arch of her swan-like neck.

"You do realize that I could kill you right now?"

Despite struggling, she mustered up that foolish smile.

"You CAN kill me...but you won't."

What the fuck? Why was she smiling?

"Why aren't you screaming? Aren't you scared of death?" He growled against her earlobe, tightening his grip just to show how serious he was.

She choked out a laugh. "Growing up in this Guild, I face certain death everyday," she took a ragged breath. "I swear, our nakama don't have any boundaries."

_Our? Did she just fucking say "OUR" nakama?_

"Who the fuck do you think I am?" He demanded, turning her over to look upon her startled face. After a small coughing fit, she spoke.

"You're part of Fairy Tail," she said simply, smiling.

He stepped back, pushing her away from him in his shock. She collided into a table, making medical supplies crash to the floor. Out of all the horrible, horrible things he had been called in his life, he took this as the worst insult.

He wrestled with his temper, trying not to snap the stupid girl's neck then and there.

"What makes you think I'm in Fairy Tail?" He asked in a low tone, angry puffs of breath escaping his lips.

The blue haired girl leaned her full hip against the table, her finger drifting to her lip in thought.

"Our plan was to use Fairy Law against all of Phantom Lord. The bomb attacks everyone EXCEPT Fairy members. You must've been in the crossfire; you were attacked, but you weren't killed. If you aren't a part of Fairy Tail, then why are you alive?" She looked up at him, smiling, despite his ferocious attack on her life.

"So that's how I know you're in Fairy Tail."

Gajeel opened his mouth, closed it, opened his mouth again, and ended up closing it again.

He had assumed he was brought to this Guild to be tortured and interrogated. He DID NOT assume that it was because of the fact they thought he was apart of the dumbass Guild itself.

The thought of being in this Guild was so horrendous that he just wanted to backhand the girl, pounding on her until she and all her pitiful little friends understood he would NEVER be one of them.

However, if what she said was true...then why was he alive?

"I know that you're still shell-shocked from the War, but I want you to know that it's all over now. There is no Phantom Lord anymore," she said soothingly, bending over to pick up the fallen items.

His head snapped up, critically looking over the small blue haired girl.

_Phantom Lord...was defeated? By Fairy Tail?_

No...It couldn't be.

Gajeel clenched his fists. He wanted to act rashly; he wanted to slice this idiotic girl in half, and then find more Fairy shits to flay.

_But I'm outnumbered..._

No, he couldn't act rashly. Even the Kurogane, a one man army, knew when to pick his battles.

_I have to work in stealth..._

He jerked back when something warm and tiny made contact with his bandaged chest. He glared down at the girl. She reminded him of a shrimp; all tiny and wispy and annoying as fuck.

She kept her palm on his chest, attempting to gently push him onto the bed. However, he wouldn't budge...it was like trying to move a mountain!

She huffed in mild annoyance, taking a step back to give him the obvious personal space he wanted.

"Listen, you have to get back on that bed. You've already exerted yourself enough," she told him.

He puffed out his chest, an air of arrogance around him.

"I don't need to lie back down. I'm not weak and pathetic like you."

Ignoring the insults, she resumed pushing him down.

"Yare, yare. You've already proved that you're all big and strong and scary. Now you need to rest, or your wounds will open up again."

She softly grunted as she persisted in getting him onto the bed. Gajeel shot her an irritated look. Levy looked ridiculous; her feet apart, her body bent forward, her hands splayed as she tried pushing with all her might. Eventually, her palm slipped, hitting against his burnt stomach.

**"ARGHHHHHH!"** He shouted. In his pain, he wildly knocked her away; swatting her as easily as swatting a fly.

She landed on the ground, her cheek red from where his hand connected against the soft skin. She immediately stood up, ignoring the throbbing pain on her face.

As she marched towards him, he snarled; but to his surprise, she just growled right back. She jabbed a finger in his face.

"Listen, you! Master put me in charge of you, whether you like it or not. And I will NOT have you dying on me. You got that?" She snapped.

Truth be told, Gajeel was a little surprised. He thought she was just a defenseless little Fairy...but she took that hit from him without even blinking and got up like it was nothing.

When he didn't have a reply, she gave him a hard nod, her face slightly softening.

"Now...I'm going to get some pain medication for that stomach wound. You have to lie down, alright?" She stared him down, all traces of that clumsy girl gone.

Gajeel managed a small "Tch", crossing his arms with a _HUFF_.

Without another word, she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Left alone, his thoughts drifted back to the Phantom Lord news. With an infuriated growl, he sat down heavily on the bed, his elbows on his knees.

He didn't know what to do, and that thoroughly pissed him off. He hated just sitting there, weak and defenseless, waiting on that Shrimp to bring him his medication.

He especially hated the fact that she looked at him like he was her goddamn _FRIEND_.

"If you hear me, say yes," a deep voice spoke from somewhere inside the room. Gajeel's head snapped up, wildly looking around the room.

"I won't repeat myself twice, Gajeel," the voice growled menacingly.

"Yes," Gajeel replied without thinking. The voice had a certain dominance and power to it. The voice seemed to be coming from under his pillow.

With a tense hand, he ripped the soft thing off the bed, throwing it to the ground. Underneath the pillow was a communication lacrima.

"Good. Very good," the voice purred. Gajeel made an annoyed sound, speaking into the lacrima.

"Who the fuck are you?" he demanded roughly.

"I would not speak out of turn, Gajeel. You want Fairy Tail obliterated, am I right?"

When Gajeel didn't respond, the voice snarled, "I asked you a question!"

"Yes," Gajeel said shortly.

"Yes what?" Came the impatient voice.

"Yes, I want Fairy Tail obliterated," Gajeel said, with rising anger.

"Good. We have something in common, Gajeel. It appears that you are the last living member of Phantom Lord. Oh, such a shame. You know what they say; the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Gajeel froze, barely registering the words. He was the last **LIVING** member of Phantom Lord? _Juvia...oh God, JUVIA._

"Are you sure?" He asked in a low voice.

"Am I sure of what?" The man asked, sounding annoyed.

"Am I really the last one?"

"I assume so. That bomb was supposed to kill each and every Phantom Lord member. You survived...I don't know how or why, but you did."

"So what do you want from me?" Gajeel asked bitterly, trying to hide the turmoil in his voice.

"We really have to work on keeping you from speaking out of turn. Fairy Tail believes that you are one of them, since you survived that blast. I want you to get close to those Fairy weaklings, to earn their trust and learn their secrets. Every time you do, I want you to report back to me. We will bring Fairy Tail down one step at a time."

Giving into his sadistic rage, Gajeel allowed himself to smile; it was his first time smiling since after the accident.

"Gihihihi. Sounds good."

He was passed the point of shock, unable to process the fact that Juvia was...

No. What he had to focus on was his new task, with his new Master.

"Hey, what's your name?" Gajeel asked.

He heard a sinister laugh on the other side of the lacrima.

"I am Ivan Dreyar, Master of the Dark Guild, Raven Tail."

**AN: Ooohh, you guys! Thanks for the positive feedback! I felt really special...ALRIGHT MY SHALLOW MOMENT IS OVER, I SWEAR.**

DUNDUNDUN! Gajeel thinks it's a good idea to go along with Raven Tail...BUT IS IT? Is it? NOOOO!

Next; I know it doesn't seem very GaLe like...but just wait for it! GALE WILL PREVAIL! Does that rhyme? *Repeats it in head a couple of times*

Also! I drew a cover picture thing for this story, but I haven't uploaded it yet. I should say that I've never taken a high-school art course; I took art in elementary school, and that consisted of finger painting. But I still drew a picture to upload onto FF...Hopefully sooner rather than later!

Read and Review, as always! :)


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